Without question, Captain America wears one of the most iconic costumes in comic book history. The fact that he has draped himself in the American flag certainly doesn't hurt the issue. But it does speak to who he is and what he stands for as a superhero.
All of that being said, Steve Rogers has also made more than a few bold fashion choices over the years. That's the nice way of saying he's worn a selection of costumes that were either odd, unfortunate, or outright awful. But regardless of the costume, Cap is still Cap.
10 Secret Avengers Cap Was An Odd Mod
The Secret Avengers were founded by Captain America during the first superhero Civil War. Since then, there have been different iterations of the team, some led by Cap and others not so much. One of his runs as the helm of the group featured a different look for him.
After Steve's "death" at the end of the first Civil War, he eventually returned to the land of the living. Bucky had become Captain America so Rogers put on a new costume and simply operated under his real name alongside the Secret Avengers. It was a much more understated yet still patriotic look.
9 Earth X Cap Was Strangely Cool
Alternate timeline versions of characters can get pretty weird and Captain America is certainly no exception to that. The Earth X version of the Star-Spangled Avenger looked like he was getting ready for the most violent college toga party of all time. Yet, Rogers pulled it off.
The Marvel Universe depicted in Earth X looked a lot different than the main continuity. Still, many of the same players were there, including Cap who had left the Avengers after outright murdering the Red Skull. Wearing the American flag as a toga was a bold fashion choice but it got his point across.
8 Mangaverse Cap Was Odd
Jumping on the Manga bandwagon, Marvel produced a series of titles based on the art style. Most of their major characters were part of this, including Captain America. He wore a suit of armor with an energy shield, the coloring of which did not evoke the patriotic sentiments fans were used to.
It's important to note that this wasn't the first time Cap had worn armor. It also wasn't the first time that he used an energy shield. But it was the first time the two had been combined in such a unique manner. This wasn't a classic look but the style had its moments and fit the world he was in.
7 Hydra Cap Makes His Debut
Captain America saying "Hail Hydra" blew more than a few minds, some not in a good way. But it's hard to argue that it was an impactful moment. And such a momentous occasion as Cap joining Hydra required a new look. As such, he started wearing a costume that was evocative of his new allegiances.
Naturally, it wasn't the real Cap. When the correct Captain America returned and straightened Hydra Cap out, things started getting back to relative normal. But real or not, seeing Captain America with a Hydra logo emblazoned across his chest was shocking, to say the least.
6 The U.S. Agent Costume Wasn't A Big Change
Just because Captain America is a devout patriot doesn't mean that he's always on the same page as the government of the United States. When he left the service of the government and being Captain America behind, he started wearing a new costume and changed his name to The Captain.
The costume still had patriotic elements and was black instead of blue. It wasn't a bold choice but it definitely differentiated him from his past. John Walker, the man who became Captain America during this time, would eventually wear the black costume and call himself U.S. Agent.
5 Steve Rogers' 2099 Clone Made A Bold Decision
Marvel's 2099 comics painted an interesting picture of the future. Several new characters were taking up the mantles of the heroes from the classic era. But Cap wasn't one of them. Instead of a new person, a clone of Rogers from the Heroic Age appeared and tried to lead the world's heroes.
His costume was pretty much the same as the classic Captain America fans knew and loved. But he didn't wear his mask, which was a small change. The big difference was him wearing a full-length, short-sleeved duster that looked like the American flag. It was a choice and not a particularly good one.
4 Running Around As Nomad
Becoming The Captain wasn't the first time Rogers walked away from his iconic hero name and costume. In the 1970s, Rogers became disillusioned with the United States government and decided to forge his own path. This time, he took the name Nomad along with a new costume.
It was a look. The costume was dark blue with a cape and a super deep V. After he went back to being Captain America, other heroes have used the Nomad costume and name as their superhero identity. Fortunately, they've improved on the style over the years.
3 1602 Cap Made Some Choices
Marvel 1602 was a limited series that took familiar heroes and put them in the Victorian era. As one would expect, this led to a lot of reimaginings of classic heroes and villains. Captain America was part of the story, though his redesign was more than a little surprising.
This version of Captain America was from a completely different universe, ending up in this alternate reality's past. Living with the Indigenous population caused him to amalgamate his classic look with local inspiration. It was an interesting choice that was loaded with cultural appropriation issues.
2 Yeoman America Was Somewhat Appropriate For His Era
Breaking reality is a standard play for comic book villains. But Morgan Le Fay took this to another level when she decided to make the modern world feel a bit more like home. She created a distortion wave that changed everything to medieval times, including Captain America and the Avengers.
Cap became a knight named Yeoman America. He wore medieval-style armor but it was still colored like the American flag. The whole thing read a little odd. The armor made perfect sense but the pattern and colors still seemed a little out of place.
1 Iron Cap Tries To Survive
Steve Rogers became Captain America thanks to the Super Soldier Serum. But his relationship with that serum hasn't always been good. At one point, it started going bad, costing Cap his enhanced abilities and threatening to paralyze him. Fortunately, Tony Stark was there to help.
He developed an exoskeleton for Captain America that allowed him to keep fighting. The armor was helpful but looked surprisingly bulky for Stark's usually sleek design. It was a definitively 1990's choice that looks really out of place today.
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